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Politics of the Democratic Republic of Congo take place in a framework of a republic in transition from a civil war to a semi-presidential republic.
On 18 and 19 December 2005, a successful nationwide referendum was carried out on a draft constitution, which set the stage for elections in 2006. The voting process, though technically difficult due to the lack of infrastructure, was facilitated and organized by the Congolese Independent Electoral Commission with support from the UN mission to the Congo (MONUC). Early UN reports indicate that the voting was for the most part peaceful, but spurred violence in many parts of the war-torn east and the Kasais.
Since 1996, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been a battleground, starting with neighboring states invading Zaire, which ended the 32-year rule of Joseph Mobutu and saw Laurent Désiré Kabila becoming the new president. These conflicts originated from the 1994 Rwanda genocide and subsequent destabilization of the DRC’s eastern region. There were nine African countries involved directly, with many more offering military, financial, and political support. Internal rebellions further complicated matters. This has led to a severe humanitarian crisis. [1]
In 2001, Laurent Kabila was killed, and his son Joseph Kabila took over as the leader of the country. Under the new president's leadership, efforts were made to bring an end to the presence of foreign troops in the eastern DRC, instead a cooperative approach was adopted, focusing on discussions to resolve conflicts and keep it peaceful. By 2002, the Pretoria Accord was achieved through negotiations known as the Inter-Congolese Dialogue. This agreement involved all warring factions, political opposition groups, and civil society, aiming to halt the fighting and establish a government of national unity. Referred to as the “Global and All-Inclusive Agreement on the Transition,” it outlined a plan for the DRC's journey toward stability, peace, and democracy. The agreement proposed that former warring factions, civil society, and political opposition would share political, military, and economic authority during a two-year transition phase, extendable by two six-month periods. During this period, plans were made for a referendum on the post-transition constitution and the conduct of general elections. [2]
In 2006, many Congolese complained that the constitution was a rather ambiguous document and were unaware of its contents. This is due in part to the high rates of illiteracy in the country. However, interim President Kabila urged Congolese to vote 'Yes', saying the constitution is the country's best hope for peace in the future. 25 million Congolese turned out for the two-day balloting. [3] [4] According to results released in January 2006, the constitution was approved by 84% of voters. [5] The new constitution also aims to decentralize authority, dividing the vast nation into 25 semi-autonomous provinces, drawn along ethnic and cultural lines. [6]
The country's first democratic elections in four decades were held on 30 July 2006.
From the day of the arguably ill-prepared independence of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the tensions between the powerful leaders of the political elite, such as Joseph Kasa Vubu, Patrice Lumumba, Moise Tshombe, Joseph Mobutu and others, jeopardize the political stability of the new state. From Tshombe's secession of the Katanga, to the assassination of Lumumba, to the two coups d'état of Mobutu, the country has known periods of true nationwide peace, but virtually no period of genuine democratic rule.
The regime of President Mobutu Sese Seko lasted 32 years (1965–1997), during which all but the first seven years the country was named Zaire. His dictatorship operated as a one-party state, which saw most of the powers concentrated between President Mobutu, who was simultaneously the head of both the party and the state through the Popular Movement of the Revolution (MPR), and a series of essentially rubber-stamping institutions.
One particularity of the Regime was the claim to be thriving for an authentic system, different from Western or Soviet influences. This lasted roughly between the establishment of Zaire in 1971, and the official beginning of the transition towards democracy, on 24 April 1990. This was true at the regular people's level as everywhere else. People were ordered by law to drop their Western Christian names; the titles Mr. and Mrs. were abandoned for the male and female versions of the French word for "citizen"; Men were forbidden to wear suits, and women to wear pants. At the institutional level, many of the institutions also changed denominations, but the end result was a system that borrowed from both systems:
Every corporation, whether financial or union, as well as every division of the administration, was set up as branches of the party. CEOs, union leaders, and division directors were each sworn-in as section presidents of the party. Every aspect of life was regulated to some degree by the party, and the will of its founding-president, Mobutu Sese Seko.
Most of the petty aspects of the regime disappeared after 1990 with the beginning of the democratic transition. Democratization would prove to be fairly short-lived, as Mobutu's power plays dragged it in length until ultimately 1997, when forces led by Laurent Kabila eventually successfully toppled the regime, after a 9-month-long military campaign.
The government of former president Mobutu Sese Seko was toppled by a rebellion led by Laurent Kabila in May 1997, with the support of Rwanda and Uganda. They were later to turn against Kabila and backed a rebellion against him in August 1998. Troops from Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia, Chad, and Sudan intervened to support the Kinshasa regime. A cease-fire was signed on 10 July 1999 by the DROC, Zimbabwe, Angola, Uganda, Namibia, Rwanda, and Congolese armed rebel groups, but fighting continued.
Under Laurent Kabila's regime, all executive, legislative, and military powers were first vested in the President, Laurent-Désiré Kabila. The judiciary was independent, with the president having the power to dismiss or appoint. The president was first head of a 26-member cabinet dominated by the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo (ADFL). Towards the end of the 90s, Laurent Kabila created and appointed a Transitional Parliament, with a seat in the buildings of the former Katanga Parliament, in the southern town of Lubumbashi, in a move to unite the country, and to legitimate his regime. Kabila was assassinated on 16 January 2001 and his son Joseph Kabila was named head of state ten days later.
Initially underestimated as a mere figurehead chosen by his father's advisors, Kabila surprised many by quickly asserting his authority and turning the government in new directions. Shortly after taking office, he went on his first international trip, where he engaged in diplomatic talks with leaders from France, Belgium, and the United States, including the Secretary of State Colin Powell, as well as officials from global institutions like the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the United Nations. During his visit to the United States, he met with Paul Kagame, the Rwandan president, despite their past differences. In a significant move in February 2001, Kabila committed to implementing a ceasefire agreement signed in July 1999, which had previously been disregarded by all involved. He initiated discussions with rebel groups and negotiated the withdrawal of troops from Rwanda, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Angola, and Namibia, which had a military presence in Congo. UN peacekeepers were deployed in March to oversee the ceasefire and troop withdrawals. [7]
The younger Kabila continued with his father's Transitional Parliament, but overhauled his entire cabinet, replacing it with a group of technocrats, with the stated aim of putting the country back on the track of development, and coming to a decisive end of the Second Congo War. In October 2002, the new president was successful in getting occupying Rwandan forces to withdraw from eastern Congo; two months later, an agreement was signed by all remaining warring parties to end the fighting and set up a Transition Government, the make-up of which would allow representation for all negotiating parties. Two founding documents emerged from this: The Transition Constitution, and the Global and Inclusive Agreement, both of which describe and determine the make-up and organization of the Congolese institutions, until planned elections in July 2006, at which time the provisions of the new constitution, democratically approved by referendum in December 2005, will take full effect and that is how it happened.
Under the Global and All-Inclusive Agreement, signed on 17 December 2002, in Pretoria, there was to be one President and four Vice-Presidents, one from the government, one from the Rally for Congolese Democracy, one from the MLC, and one from civil society. The position of Vice-President expired after the 2006 elections.
After being for three years (2003–06) in the interregnum between two constitutions, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is now under the regime of the Constitution of the Third Republic. The constitution, adopted by referendum in 2005, and promulgated by President Joseph Kabila in February 2006, establishes a decentralized semi-presidential republic, with a separation of powers between the three branches of government - executive, legislative and judiciary, and a distribution of prerogatives between the central government and the provinces.
In September 2016, violent protests were met with brutal force by the police and Republican Guard soldiers. Opposition groups claim 80 dead, including the Students' Union leader. From Monday 19 September Kinshasa residents, as well as residents elsewhere in Congo, where mostly confined to their homes. Police arrested anyone remotely connected to the opposition as well as innocent onlookers. Government propaganda, on television, and actions of covert government groups in the streets, acted against opposition as well as foreigners. The president's mandate was due to end on 19 December 2016, but no plans were made to elect a replacement at that time and this caused further protests. [8]
As of 8 August 2017 there are 54 political parties legally operating in the Congo. [9]
On 15 December 2018 US State Department announced it had decided to evacuate its employees’ family members from Democratic Republic of Congo just before the Congolese elections to choose a successor to President Joseph Kabila. [10]
On 30 December 2018 the presidential election to determine the successor to Kabila was held. On 10 January 2019, the electoral commission announced opposition candidate Félix Tshisekedi as the winner of the vote. [11] He was officially sworn in as President on 24 January 2019. [12] In the ceremony of taking of the office [13] Félix Tshisekedi appointed Vital Kamerhe as his chief of staff. In June 2020, chief of staff Vital Kamerhe was found guilty of embezzling public funds and he was sentenced to 20 years in prison. [14] His initial campaign pledged to enhance living standards in the DRC, a country abundant in minerals but plagued by widespread poverty among its 100 million people, and to bring an end to 25 years of violence in the eastern region. [15]
The political allies of former president Joseph Kabila, who stepped down in January 2019, maintained control of key ministries, the legislature, judiciary and security services. However, President Felix Tshisekedi succeeded to strengthen his hold on power. In a series of moves, he won over more legislators, gaining the support of almost 400 out of 500 members of the National Assembly. The pro-Kabila speakers of both houses of parliament were forced out. In April 2021, the new government was formed without the supporters of Kabila. [16] President Felix Tshisekedi succeeded to oust the last remaining elements of his government who were loyal to former leader Joseph Kabila. [17]
After the 2023 presidential election, Tshisekedi had a clear lead in his run for a second term. [18] Despite the economic growth, numerous Congolese citizens were voicing concerns about the decline of the Congolese franc, which is significantly affecting their everyday experiences. Despite the nation's abundant mineral resources and sizable population, the quality of life has not substantially improved for the majority, as conflict, corruption, and inadequate governance continue to endure. During his reelection campaign, he reiterated promises from five years prior, including job creation, enhancing economic stability, and addressing the persistent insecurity that has plagued the eastern region for thirty years, resulting in the loss of millions of lives. [19] On 20 December 2023, official said that President Felix Tshisekedi had been re-elected with 73% of the vote. Nine opposition candidates signed a declaration rejecting the election and called for a rerun. [20] In January, following the election, the major opposition candidate, Moise Katumbi was momentarily placed under house arrest but this was quickly rectified by the governor of Haut-Katanga province. The ruling party, President Tshisekedi's UDPS, won the majority of seats in general elections, winning 69 seats in the 500-member National Assembly ahead of 44 other parties. [21]
Since the July 2006 elections, the country is led by a semi-presidential, strongly-decentralized state. The executive at the central level, is divided between the President, and a Prime Minister appointed by him/her from the party having the majority of seats in Parlement. Should there be no clear majority, the President can appoint a "government former" that will then have the task to win the confidence of the National Assembly. The President appoints the government members (ministers) at the proposal of the Prime Minister. In coordination, the President and the government have the charge of the executive. The Prime minister and the government are responsible to the lower-house of Parliament, the National Assembly.
At the province level, the Provincial legislature (Provincial Assembly) elects a governor, and the governor, with his government of up to 10 ministers, is in charge of the provincial executive. Some domains of government power are of the exclusive provision of the Province, and some are held concurrently with the Central government. This is not a Federal state however, simply a decentralized one, as the majority of the domains of power are still vested in the Central government. The governor is responsible to the Provincial Assembly.
The semi-presidential system has been described by some as "conflictogenic" and "dictatogenic", as it ensures frictions, and a reduction of pace in government life, should the President and the Prime Minister be from different sides of the political arena. This was seen several times in France, a country that shares the semi-presidential model. It was also, arguably, in the first steps of the Congo into independence, the underlying cause of the crisis between Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba and President Joseph Kasa Vubu, who ultimately dismissed each other, in 1960.
In January 2015 the 2015 Congolese protests broke out in the country's capital following the release of a draft law that would extend the presidential term limits and allow Joseph Kabila to run again for office.
The Inter-Congolese dialogue, that set-up the transitional institutions, created a bicameral parliament, with a National Assembly and Senate, made up of appointed representatives of the parties to the dialogue. These parties included the preceding government, the rebel groups that were fighting against the government, with heavy Rwandan and Ugandan support, the internal opposition parties, and the Civil Society. At the beginning of the transition, and up until recently, the National Assembly is headed by the MLC with Speaker Hon. Olivier Kamitatu, while the Senate is headed by a representative of the Civil Society, namely the head of the Church of Christ in Congo, Mgr. Pierre Marini Bodho. Hon. Kamitatu has since left both the MLC and the Parliament to create his own party, and ally with current President Joseph Kabila. Since then, the position of Speaker is held by Hon. Thomas Luhaka, of the MLC.
Aside from the regular legislative duties, the Senate had the charge to draft a new constitution for the country. That constitution was adopted by referendum in December 2005, and decreed into law on 18 February 2006.
The Parliament of the third republic is also bicameral, with a National Assembly and a Senate. Members of the National Assembly, the lower - but the most powerful - house, are elected by direct suffrage. Senators are elected by the legislatures of the 26 provinces.
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The Congolese Judicial Branch Consists of a Supreme Court, which handles federal crimes.
10 provinces (provinces, singular - province) and one city* (ville): Bandundu, Bas-Congo, Équateur, Kasai-Occidental, Kasai-Oriental, Katanga, Kinshasa*, Maniema, North Kivu, Orientale.
Each province is divided into districts and cities.
25 provinces (provinces, singular - province) and city* (ville): Bas-Uele | Équateur | Haut-Lomami | Haut-Katanga | Haut-Uele | Ituri | Kasaï | Kasaï oriental | Kongo central | Kwango | Kwilu | Lomami | Lualaba | Lulua | Mai-Ndombe | Maniema | Mongala | North Kivu | Nord-Ubangi | Sankuru | South Kivu | Sud-Ubangi | Tanganyika | Tshopo | Tshuapa | Kinshasa*
Each province is divided into territories and cities.
Candidate | Party | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Félix Tshisekedi | Union for Democracy and Social Progress | 7,051,013 | 38.56 | |
Martin Fayulu | Dynamic of Congolese Political Opposition | 6,366,732 | 34.82 | |
Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary | Common Front for Congo | 4,357,359 | 23.83 | |
Radjabho Tebabho Soborabo | Congolese United for Reform | 70,249 | 0.38 | |
Vital Kamerhe | Union for the Congolese Nation | 51,380 | 0.28 | |
Pierre Honoré Kazadi Lukonda Ngube-Ngube | People's Front for Justice | 44,019 | 0.24 | |
Theodore Ngoy Ilunga wa Nsenga | Independent | 43,697 | 0.24 | |
Freddy Matungulu | Our Congo | 33,273 | 0.18 | |
Marie-Josée Ifoku | Alliance of Elites for a New Congo | 27,313 | 0.15 | |
Jean-Philibert Mabaya | Rainbow of Congo | 26,907 | 0.15 | |
Samy Badibanga | The Progressives | 26,722 | 0.15 | |
Alain Daniel Shekomba | Independent | 26,611 | 0.15 | |
Seth Kikuni | Independent | 23,552 | 0.13 | |
Noël Kabamba Tshiani Muadiamvita | Independent | 23,548 | 0.13 | |
Charles Luntadila | Independent | 20,182 | 0.11 | |
Yves Mpunga | Premier Political Force | 18,976 | 0.10 | |
Tryphon Kin-Kiey Mulumba | Independent | 16,596 | 0.09 | |
Gabriel Mokia Mandembo | Movement of Congolese Democrats | 15,778 | 0.09 | |
Francis Mvemba | Independent | 15,013 | 0.08 | |
Sylvain Maurice Masheke | Independent | 14,337 | 0.08 | |
Joseph Maluta | Independent | 11,562 | 0.06 | |
Total | 18,284,819 | 100.00 | ||
Valid votes | 18,284,819 | 99.74 | ||
Invalid/blank votes | 48,498 | 0.26 | ||
Total votes | 18,333,317 | 100.00 | ||
Registered voters/turnout | 38,542,138 | 47.57 | ||
Source: African Union [lower-alpha 1] |
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEEAC, CEPGL, East African Community, ECA, FAO, G-19, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UPU, WCO WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
The earliest known human settlements in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo have been dated back to the Middle Stone Age, approximately 90,000 years ago. The first real states, such as the Kongo, the Lunda, the Luba and Kuba, appeared south of the equatorial forest on the savannah from the 14th century onwards.
Laurent-Désiré Kabila usually known as Laurent Kabila, was a Congolese rebel and politician who served as the third President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1997 until his assassination in 2001.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a country in Central Africa. By land area, the DRC is the second-largest country in Africa and the 11th-largest in the world. With a population of around 105 million, the Democratic Republic of the Congo is the most populous Francophone country in the world. The national capital and largest city is Kinshasa, which is also the economic center. The country is bordered by the Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, South Sudan, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania, Zambia, Angola, the Cabinda exclave of Angola, and the South Atlantic Ocean.
Joseph Kabila Kabange is a Congolese politician who served as President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo between January 2001 and January 2019. He took office ten days after the assassination of his father, President Laurent-Désiré Kabila in the context of the Second Congo War. He was allowed to remain in power after the 2003 Pretoria Accord ended the war as the president of the country's new transitional government. He was elected as president in 2006 and re-elected in 2011 for a second term. Since stepping down after the 2018 election, Kabila, as a former president, serves as a senator for life.
Léon Kengo wa Dondo is a Congolese politician who served as the "first state commissioner" several times under Mobutu Sese Seko in Zaïre. He was one of the most powerful figures in the regime and was a strong advocate of economic globalization and free-market economics. He served as President of the Senate of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 2007 to 2019.
Étienne Tshisekedi wa Mulumba was a Congolese politician and the leader of the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS), the main opposing political party in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). A long-time opposition leader, he served as Prime Minister of the country on three brief occasions: in 1991, 1992–1993, and 1997. He was also the father of the current President, Felix Tshisekedi.
Vital Kamerhe Lwa Kanyiginyi Nkingi is a Congolese politician, currently serving as Deputy Prime Minister of Economy and the leader of the Union for the Congolese Nation (UNC) party. He served as the President of the National Assembly of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 2006 to 2009. After resigning from that office, he went into the opposition and founded the UNC. He ran in the 2011 presidential election. He supported Félix Tshisekedi as a coalition partner in the 2018 presidential election, and became chief of staff when Tshisekedi took office.
Corruption in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which used to be an institutionalized part of the state, has been relatively lowered in recent years. However, it continues to exceed corruption in comparison to most states. The BBC's DRC country profile calls its recent history "one of civil war and corruption." President Joseph Kabila established the Commission of Repression of Economic Crimes upon his ascension to power in 2001.
The Republican Guard of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, formerly known as the Special Presidential Security Group, is maintained by President Félix Tshisekedi. Military of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC) military officials state that the Garde Républicaine is not the responsibility of FARDC, but the Head of State. Apart from Article 140 of the Law on the Army and Defence, no legal stipulation on the DRC's Armed Forces makes provision for the GR as a distinct unit within the national army. In February 2005, President Joseph Kabila passed a decree which appointed the GR's commanding officer and 'repealed any previous provisions contrary' to that decree. The GR is more than 10,000 strong, and formerly consisted of three brigades, the 10th, at Kinshasa, the 15th, and the 16th, at Lubumbashi. It has better working conditions and is paid regularly, but still commits numerous crimes near their bases, including against United Nations officials.
John Numbi was a Congolese security officer and retainer of Joseph Kabila, who rose to the rank of General. Until January 2010, he was the Inspector General of the Congolese National Police. In 2018 he was appointed as the Inspector General of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC). He was replaced in that role in 2020, and fled the DR Congo after Joseph Kabila's power dwindled in the first quarter of 2021.
Senate elections were held in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on 14 March 2019 to elect the 108 Senators. Former DRC President Joseph Kabila, who stepped down from office in January 2019 following the inauguration of the recently elected Félix Tshisekedi, has also joined the upper house of the legislature as a senator for life, for a total of 109 seats.
The Union for the Congolese Nation is a political party in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It was founded in 2010 by Vital Kamerhe, who was at the time a close ally of the former president Joseph Kabila. Kamerhe had previously served as the Chief of Staff to Kabila and as the Speaker of the National Assembly.
General elections were held in the Democratic Republic of the Congo on 30 December 2018, to determine a successor to President Joseph Kabila, as well as for the 500 seats of the National Assembly and the 715 elected seats of the 26 provincial assemblies. Félix Tshisekedi (UDPS) won with 38.6% of the vote, defeating another opposition candidate, Martin Fayulu, and Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary, backed by the ruling party PPRD. Fayulu alleged that the vote was rigged against him in a deal made by Tshisekedi and outgoing President Kabila, challenging the result in the DRC's Constitutional Court. Different election observers, including those from the country's Roman Catholic Church, also cast doubt on the official result. Nonetheless on 20 January the Court rejected his appeal and declared Tshisekedi as the winner. Parties supporting President Kabila won the majority of seats in the National Assembly. Félix Tshisekedi was sworn in as the 5th President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo on 24 January 2019, making it the first peaceful transition of power in the country since it became independent from Belgium in 1960.
Samy Badibanga Ntita is a Congolese politician who was Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from November 2016 to May 2017. He was also on the ballot for the 2018 Democratic Republic of the Congo general election as a presidential candidate.
Ève Bazaiba Masudi is a Congolese lawyer, politician, and human rights activist. As of May 2019, she served as the Secretary General of the Movement for the Liberation of the Congo (MLC) political party. She is Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for the Environment since 2021.
Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo is a Congolese politician who has been the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo since 24 January 2019. He is the leader of the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS), the DRC's oldest and largest party, succeeding his late father Étienne Tshisekedi in that role, a three-time Prime Minister of Zaire and opposition leader during the reign of Mobutu Sese Seko. Tshisekedi was the UDPS party's candidate for president in the December 2018 general election, which he was awarded, despite accusations of irregularities from several election monitoring organisations and other opposition parties. The Constitutional Court of the DRC upheld his victory after another opposition politician, Martin Fayulu, challenged the result, but Tshisekedi has been accused of making a deal with his predecessor, Joseph Kabila. The election marked the first peaceful transition of power since the state became independent from Belgium in 1960.
Martin Madidi Fayulu is a Congolese politician. He is the leader of the Engagement for Citizenship and Development party.
Sylvestre Ilunga Ilunkamba is a Congolese politician who was appointed as the Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in May 2019, formally establishing his government in August 2019. He has had a long political career going back to the 1970s, having held a number of ministerial cabinet posts, and was previously a professor at the University of Kinshasa since 1979. Ilunga has also been the secretary general of Congo's national railway company. He has a reputation as an experienced public servant and technocrat, as well as an ally of former President Joseph Kabila.
Dominique Sakombi Inongo was a Congolese politician and diplomat.
Formal diplomatic relations between Israel and the Democratic Republic of Congo have existed since 1962. Both countries are members of the United Nations. In 1973, like the majority of African countries that previously recognized Israel, Zaire decided to break its relations with Israel after the Yom Kippur War, but reestablished them, unlike other African countries, in the early 1980s.